It’s interesting how American English and British English are different. As Churchill once said, "Two nations separated by a common language." Amanda used an interesting term on Pownce today, and I actually had to look it up… "On the pull". An interesting idiom. I found this pretty amusing site, the English-to-American Dictionary.

pull v. The art of distracting the opposite sex. Pulling is conceptually very similar to hooking up. To be on the pull is a less proactive version of sharking. Single males and females are almost all on the pull but will deny it fervently and pretend to be terribly surprised when eventually it pays off.

I wonder if they have a Second Life to First Life Dictionary anywhere…

-Veyron

Evian is actually offering something nice that everyone needs - a skin.  Not just any skin a really good skin.  You can get 6 skins, 3 male and 3 female of differing shades - oh and a free bottle of Evian water for L$0.  They are high quality skins from RealSKIN.  They’ve done a good corporate deed, but it’s not so easy to find.  You can find this gem in the Romatica sim.  Just go up to the vendor and give it a push.  Grab yourself a copy, you can never have enough skins, before this cool freebie disappears.

-Veyron

Koz needs help with the Lindens in getting a “bug” fixed.  It will solve a problem with BlogHUD not being able to get the coordinates of a postcard now emailed from the browser - how you post an image to the site.  I suspect that Snapzilla is similarly broken.  You can log into Jira and vote for the Lindens to fix this problem.

Thanks!

-Veyron

Time to pick a new theme for the upcoming blogger party.  On the sidebar on the right, you should see a poll for the theme options.  This months options are:

• Tinies
• Film Noir
• Western
• Sports
• Robots

All look kinda interesting, except Tinies - which I have no outfit for, but I could of course shop for….  Now, what to vote for….

-Veyron

So, I came across this humorist post about growing up, and yes, it was disturbing.  But rather than dwell on the posting, Veyron though she should answer the posting….

1. Your houseplants are alive, and you can’t smoke any of them.

My plants are all dead.  They are not even plastic, they made of pixels.  No, you can’t smoke any of them (hmmmm, maybe I need to go shopping…), but some do have alternative uses….

2. Having sex in a twin bed is out of the question.

Where are my cuffs?

3. You keep more food than beer in the fridge.

I don’t have any food, in fact, well, I don’t really eat.  But I guess I have sort of drunk before.  I do know that Vint had a bender at least once….

4. 6:00 AM is when you get up, not when you go to bed.

Sleep?  I never sleep, except when I logoff.

5. You hear your favorite song in an elevator.

Don’t ride elevators, I fly.

6. You watch the Weather Channel.

It’s always sunny, at least until the new sky software is implemented.

7. Your friends marry and divorce instead of “hook up” and “breakup.”

Hmmm…  Might be caught on this one, but they all pretty much do all of the above…  but at a might higher rate of speed.

8. You go from 130 days of vacation time to 14.

I’m on permanent vacation.

9. Jeans and a sweater no longer qualify as “dressed up.”

I have more clothes than Barbie.

10. You’re the one calling the police because those %&@# kids next door won’t turn down the stereo.

Crank it up baby!

11. Older relatives feel comfortable telling sex jokes around you.

There was a man from Nantucket….

12. You don’t know what time Taco Bell closes anymore.

Yo quiro!  But then again, I don’t eat - but I do wonder when Taco Bell will be opening up a sim and will it give you indigestion.

13. Your car insurance goes down and your car payments go up.

Ohhhh….  I wonder how many tickets I would have by down if I did drive and they did have SLcops.

14. You feed your dog “Science Diet” instead of McDonald’s leftovers.

No dog, but then again, maybe I need a furry.

15. Sleeping on the couch makes your back hurt.

I have slept hanging upside with cuffs on….

16. You take naps.

Only when I crash.

17. Dinner and a movie is the whole date instead of the beginning of one.

Dinner and a movie?  Gee, that would be something new in SL for moi….

18. Eating a basket of chicken wings at three in the morning would severely upset, rather than settle, your stomach.

Again, don’t eat, but then if I did, I could probably eat anything.  Well, let me rephrase that.  I don’t eat food.

19. You go to the drug store for ibuprofen and antacid, not condoms and pregnancy tests.

I do have some Seclimine….

20. A four dollar bottle of wine is no longer “pretty good shit.”

Hmmm…  Any wine I’d get would probably be less than four dollars at the current exchange rate….

21. You actually eat breakfast food at breakfast time.

Cold pizza?

22. “I just can’t drink the way I used to” replaces “I’m never going to drink that much again.”

Gee, where do I find these parties?

23. Ninety percent of the time you spend in front of a computer is for real work.

I am only fun.  I can’t help it, I was drawn this way….

24. You drink at home to save money before going to a bar.

Usually the cost is the same, and besides, I can drink as much as I want.

25. When you find out your friend is pregnant you congratulate them instead of asking “Oh shit what the hell happened?”

Gawd, just detach that prim….

Bonus:

26: You read this entire list looking desperately for one sign that it doesn’t apply to you and can’t find one to save your sorry old ass.

My perfect pixelated ass…. 

 -Veyron

Hey, now here’s just what the male n00bs need.  Classes on how to dress and behave in SL.  I can’t you how much of an improvement some n00bs get when they make some basic changes to their avie.  Plus learning some basic manners would be a real improvement.  From the news article:

Being a newbie in Second Life is hard for almost everyone, but Brianna Beresford believes it’s particularly tough on guys–and she’s hoping to make some money doing something about it.  Beresford’s Virtual Male Institute will offer classes on SL skills for men, from avatar improvement and upgrades to interpersonal skills.

Sounds good.  Now, how many are going to sign up?

-Veyron

I’ve been playing around lately in a role playing sim in Second Life, called City of Lost Angels.  I think some of you are familiar with it.  It has been rather entertaining and amusing.  For sure it is different than dancing at a club, although there is a club in the sim.  I am playing a demoness in the game.  I had originally made this costume back in January for a club that is now closed.  I’ve been tweaking on it now and then for some time, but obviously the theme stays the same.

Looker Lumet took some more pictures of me in dressed like this in at the Crimson Shadow Rezzable sim.

I think these pictures really turned out great.  I wanted to thank Looker for the job on them.  Check out his blog and then his Flickr stream to see the rest of them.

-Veyron

So, I’ve been playing with Twitter and now Pownce.  But Pownce is still in beta, and you need an invite to get into it.  I have invites to get in.  So, if you need or want to get into it, send me a feedback, comment here or an email and I’ll get you an invite.  At least until I run out of them.  It’s first come, first server.

Gee, then you’d get an official Veyron Pownced invite - think how valuable that will be in the future.  You can tell you grandchildren about that.

-Veyron

Could it be that World of Warcraft players are more perverted than the center of all known virtual sin, Second Life?  I mean clearly, as far as I know, there’s no sexgens, no xcite, and certainly no deviant devpose gear in WoW.  But maybe we’re missing out here.  I mean, in this global virtual arms race of perversity that we find ourselves engaged in, this paladin from WoW seems to have found a winning system.

I’ve noticed a lot of complaints about paladins lately, with regard to their low dps and limited combat options. But what players are forgetting is the main reason Blizzard programmed paladins. Paladins were not designed to be hybrid tanks/healers, as many claim. Instead, paladins were designed to be played while downloading pornography.

Paladins have roughly zero amount of combat interaction, thus making them the perfect character to play while downloading massive amounts of hardcore pornography. Simply target a monster, hit “1″, and minimize your window. Then sit back and enjoy amazing girl on girl action.

Because a paladin takes about one full minute to kill a monster, you can leisurely browse the erotic and pornographic fruits of the internet, without much concern over your paladin’s welfare. After a minute, I go back to WoW, and usually my paladin is still alive and ready to loot the corpse. This is what makes grinding so pleasurable and convenient for me; the ability to simultaneously watch girls have sex with each other and level up at the same time. I doubt any other class has such an elegantly designed system, and I applaud Blizzard for their foresight in crafting a character that I can play with while playing with myself.

DPS? Who needs it? The quicker I kill something, the less time I have to watch my boobies. Combat interactivity? Overrated. Id much rather interact with the girls writhing on my computer screen. Yes, a paladin was created for the sole purpose of surviving a fight while you stream hot porn directly to your computer. That is why we have the high armor class, the healing ability, and the low, low, DPS.

As for PVP, nothing is better than getting into battlegrounds and soaking up the honor points while I watch girls take their clothes off for money. Only the minimum of interaction is necessary for a paladin to perform, and it is this very quality that I love most about my paladin. I doubt rogues get any time to watch porn while trying to vanish and rack up combo points, and I bet shamans havent seen a single naked breast while figuring out what totem to throw down before choosing which shock they are going to cast next.

In addition to grinding, we have several defensive options during combat that also allow us flexibility to download porn. Hammer of Justice allows us a quick 6 second glimpse at naked women while our opponent is stunned, and Divine Shield allows a leisurely 12 seconds of quality right-hand time. Indeed, paladins have cornered the market on the pornography during playtime of World of Warcraft gameplay.

It saddens me that many paladins do not take advantage of the main functionality of their character, and are in fact lobbying for increased DPS or more combat options, unnecessary frivolities that would only harm our pornography downloading efficiency. Instead, we should thank the fine programmers at Blizzard for crafting a character that is great to grind with while grinding your loins.

- level 59 paladin named Genkaku

What does this all mean?  We need to take our perversity up a notch or two.  Clearly the gauntlet has been thrown down here and the residents of Second Life need to rise (ahem) to the occasion.  I know SL residents have never shirked from their new ability to find and create new and innovative kinky devices, poses, and playthings.  So, let’s step up here.

-Veyron

Hmmm, no this is not possibly the worst Star Trek episode ever made… it is a new odd search engine called Spock. It’s designed around finding people (and I guess now avatars). I’ve got Vint, Zoe and Codie (and it looks like Timothy) now hooked into this giant machine, you too can join in the madness. My entry can be found on Spock linked to other people. Now the amusing part it you can add tags (and sort of remove tags) and information for other people. Just think of the entries for Dalien, Gideon, Tiessa, and (gasp) Prok! Better get there before someone else creates your entry for you….

-Veyron

Sink, originally uploaded by krazykoreanbling.

Other than being totally sexist (but amusing), this is an innovative idea to get men to wash their hands. I suspect they’d get their hands really, really clean. Maybe someone needs to patent this….

-Veyron

So Law and Order: SVU has a show with a virtual world in it. And surprise, surprise, anyone who uses or plays in it is a sicko. I didn’t bother watching it because the plot was predictable, but Zoe did, and confirmed my suspicions. Of course now, we all are kinda perverted in a normal sick sort of way. But in a much better healthier out in the virtual open way. So let’s compare Second Life to Real Life.

Real Life has life and death

Second Life has prim babies that look like Pokemons and if you die you get teleported home.

Real Life has violent crimes

Second Life’s idea of a violent crime is giant penis’s being virtually flung at you on stage, embarrassing you.

Real Life has finiancial crimes and fraud

 Anyone dumb enough to believe they were going to get 400% return on an investment with no risk….  well, you knew better, didn’t you?

Real Life has cops, lawyers and judges

Second Life has none….  ummm, but we do have Linden Labs (how do we get those cops, lawyers and judges now?)

Real Life has people starving, homeless, and in poor living conditions

Avatars do not need, food, water, light, or air (even can go into orbit).   They can survive falls from incredible heights.  Survive being thrown in hot lava.  Being folded up like an origami doll.  Even walk around with your hair up your ass.  Wearing shoes from Dark Eden for extended periods of time without permanent back injury.  And dang, they don’t even need to go potty.

Real Life men usually have one orgasm, and roll over and either go to sleep or turn on the TV (or would secretly like to).

 Second Life men enjoy demonstrating their prowess and want to make sure their partner is having a good time and well satisfied.

Real Life primping for a party up can take hours.

Second Life primping involves shopping through your inventory, clicking a few buttons, and waiting for them to rez.  Shoes that would themselves take 20 minutes to put on take 10 seconds in Second Life.

Real Life tanning requires multiple sessions outside or in a tanning studio.

Second Life requires you to change your skins.  And you can decide if you want tan lines or not in seconds.

Real Life criminalizes or ostracizes lots of deviant sexual behavior.

Second Life usually rates it on a sliding quality scale.

Real Life takes itself very seriously.

Second Life tries to take itself seriously, but can never quite wipe the silly smirk off it’s face from the that impossible sexual escapade last night.

Real Life has campers.  Like in national parks and places of great beauty.

Second Life has campers in casinos speakeasies, clubs and empty malls.

Real Life sex carries (albit small now) risk of getting a STD and maybe even dying from it.

In Second Life you might make a mess on or around your computer.

In Real Life if I go into a dangerous place I might get really hurt.

Second Life’s idea of a dangerous place is a sim when you get notice it’s about to be restarted.

Real Life has corporate consumerism fueling massive expenditure of money on lots of frivolous items.

Second Life has mom & pop consumerism fueling massive expenditure of  a toy currency on lots of frivolous virtual items.  (Okay, I think that one is a wash….)

But let’s be clear, to paraphrase the NRA, avatars don’t make perverts, people make perverts.  And since I’m an avatar, I’m in the clear.  (I like that logic…)

-Veyron

Second Life is a lot of things, good and bad.  For me, Second Life is all about entertainment and some social activity - as it seems to be designed for.  The dark side of Second Life is when it becomes a force for dragging yourself down.  Whenever I feel Second Life is being more of a negative than a positive to myself, I just remember what I am here for, having a good time.

I see and talk to a lot of people who get dragged down into the abyss of some sort of negative drama.  It usually comes up subtly, creeping up slowly, engulfing their thinking and consuming their Second Life and eventually their Real Life.  This is a “bad thing” - something to be avoided.  Maybe it is impossible to avoid if you have anything beyond a casual relationship with anyone in Second Life.  I would like to think it does not happen to me, but of course it does now and then.

I have met a lot of really interesting and neat people in Second Life.  To be honest, there’s no one I have found I dislike.  I feel worse that there is not enough of “me” to go around to pay attention to all of the friends I have met.  I have been in Second Life now for close to a year, and upon reflection of that last year, I find that from a close relationship side it has not been all that positive for myself.  Maybe that’s a good thing, maybe not.

Second Life experiences in general are a bit lonely and detached.  I think that’s a reason why people partner up in Second Life, to have someone to do things with, rather than alone.  Typically, you are lone while you are at your computer in Second Life, and it seems less alone while doing something with another avatar.  My personal experience with doing that with someone else has been alas, very poor.  Maybe I’m too much like a Neko, I like doing my own thing.

I have also noticed a distinct evolution of personal habits and behaviors within Second Life.  Starting with typically n00b wonderment, then on to shopaholic, avatar tweaking, clubbing, dancing, flirting, etc.  Then on to more semi-serious things like blogging, group activities and socializing.  But still problems with serious relationships.  My FAQ probably does a lot to explain it.   A combination of flirtiness and stand-off-ishness is never good for relationships.

Another bad habit I have is willingness to try just about anything, at least once.  Experiences are something to be tried in life, after all, you might not get to try them again.  I’ve tried a lot of things in Second Life, some have been good, some have been flops.  In the last month or so, I have been struggling with Second Life.  It’s a common theme with most of you other bloggers I think.  Some of my closest Second Life friends have been off grid for sometime and I am struggling with a failing Second Life relationship.

The funk has been bad enough I have considering retiring or going off grid for a while.  The last time I had this sort of problem in Second Life was back in January and then I decided that I was not going to allow myself to be chased off the grid by myself, so I stayed.  I’ll probably stay at least this time.

Where I’m going with this is I am struggling to find a purpose inside Second Life.  I am somewhat depressed about the relationship failures.  I somewhat feel I should take the majority of the fault for their failure.  Maybe I am looking for too much or unwilling to give enough.  Maybe the real route for me in Second Life is friendships rather than something like a “marriage”.

I’m still just trying to figure it out….

-Veyron